


Loyalty

by CrystalNavy



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Birthday, Don't touch our captain cos you'll have to go through all of us if you do, Family, Fluff, Gen, He is our Captain, Inner Demons, Merging of crews, Self-Worth Issues, We won't let you execute our Okashira, We'll make him our Pirate King - because his father was one
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-01
Updated: 2018-05-17
Packaged: 2019-04-30 17:22:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14501862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrystalNavy/pseuds/CrystalNavy
Summary: Life and times of the Spade Pirates





	1. Death wish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "For the crime of wishing our Captain was dead, we sentence you to an assbeating."

"What if Gol D. Roger had a child?" 

It was the same question that was asked many times, and the answer was still expected.

"Then I hope they drown in a vat of acid." a man said icily "The offspring of the devil can bring nothing but trouble to this world."

However, this time, it was different. This time, the Spade Pirates overheard. They saw that their Captain's eyes dimmed just a little.

And that was enough.

"Hey, Aggy." the first mate of Spade Pirates leaned against the wall casually "Did you hear what I heard?"

"Yes, Deuce." Aggy grinned "It appears that they wish Roger's child was dead."

"A death wish, as it is." Deuce twirled his Captain's hat around his finger "Go back to the ship, Ace. We'll catch up to you later."

"Yes, see you there." Ace waved

As soon as he was certain Ace was gone, Deuce turned to the offenders

"For the crime of wishing our Captain was dead, we sentence you to an assbeating." Deuce announced 

And the Spade Pirates attacked.

-x-

They slowly nailed the offenders to the ground, one limb at the time. Once this was done, they stepped back to admire their handiwork.

"What you you think will happen?" Aggy asked

"Eh, they'll probably starve to death or die of thirst." Deuce dismissed "They wished death upon another, and our Captain at that. I'd say that this is karma."

"Yeah, they had this coming." Aggy nodded

The rest of the Spade Pirates agreed with this sentiment wholeheartedly, and so they left, returning to the ship.

They found their Captain leaning against the railing, head buried in his knees.

"Don't beat yourself up over what they said." Deuce whispered "What do you know, anyway?"

"You are you." Aggy added "You are our Captain, and no blood relations could change that."

"Thanks, guys." Ace looked up, grinning "Now, what's for lunch?"

Everyone laughed at that.

"It should be ready soon." Deuce chuckled

They may come across obstacles they had to overcome, but as long as their Captain was alive and happy, Spade Pirates would overcome all of them together, bloodlines and heritages be damned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I thought how the Spade Pirates would react if they overheard the Question and the Answer, and so this chapter was born.


	2. The celebration to remember

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Careful planning is the key.

"Come on, we'd better get a move on. Our nice dinner is waiting." Mihar shuffled from foot to foot

Once Aggy and Ace joined him, the three of them moved towards the city as one.

"All right." Deuce opened the storage closet. Inside were wrappers, decorations and other birthday stuff "We have three hours to put all of these up, and then the real fun shall begin."

With matching grins on their faces, the Spade Pirates got to work.

It was three hours before Ace, Aggy and Mihar returned. The Spade Pirates managed to get everything prepared by that time, including the cake, which rested on a large table. The table was big enough to accommodate all members of the Spade Pirates, including the Captain.

The dinner was a momentous occasion. Everyone laughed and cracked the usual sorts of jokes like they did every day. It was just like any ordinary day. Except it wasn't. The cake resting on the table behind Mihar, the wrappers that spelled out a birthday message, and the gifts stacked neatly in a corner of the deck all indicated otherwise. It was a suprise that their Captain hadn't noticed any of that yet. He was too oblivious for his own good sometimes.

To a crew, their Captain was the most important person on board. They gave the orders and they held the crew members together. Spade Pirates were all outcasts, until he came along. He united them under one banner, to cause trouble to the very society that had rejected them.

The Capain himself, however, was the biggest outcast of them all. Being the son of the Pirate King and the stigma it carried with it was not something anyone could overlook. Yet, instead of being put-off with this revelation, the Spade Pirates were excited. Sailing under Pirate King's son was something few crews had a privilege of doing. They were gonna give their Captain his father's title, no matter what it took.

The Captain's importance extended to mundane matters, such as this one, as well.

Then, without warning, all Spade Pirates burst into the familiar song. Aggy and Mihar transported the cake from the smaller table to the bigger one, before joining in.

There was a pout on Captain's face as he chided them for making something like this behind his back despite knowing how much he hated the day he was born, but his protests were shut down with a simple sentence, as they always were.

"Your mother died to bring you into this world. Are you gonna disrespect her sacrifice like this?" Deuce interjected 

That got the Captain to shut up. One of the perks the Spade Pirates had was that they knew exactly what to say at any given time. With their choice words, they played their own Captain like a fiddle with expert ease. Someone had to save him from his own stupidity, after all.

"Happy birthday, Okashira!" the Spade Pirates chorused

Their Captain's wide, infectious smile was a reward enough for all the effort they put into making this work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *blows a party horn* For my favorite character in One Piece. May he live on and on in our hearts.


	3. The problem

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their Captain is sometimes stubborn, but nothing they can't deal with.

The latest fight went awry. Some hoodlums at the bar provoked them. The Spade Pirates fought together, and that was where it all went wrong. One of their opponents managed to get a lucky hit in, stabbing their Captain with a poisoned dagger. Spade pirates took them all out, but by that time, the poison began to spread. They carried their shivering and delirious Captain onto the ship, and entrusted him to Cornelia, the only crewmate with medical knowledge they had.

After she checked his temperature, Cornelia decreed that their Captain was to stay in bed at all times for three days. She gave him the medicine to counter the poison. The crew pitched in to make sure her orders would be followed to the letter. They didn't want to lose him, after all. Not over something like this, anyway.

So they took turns watching. They knew that their Okashira was stubborn, so they arranged it so that a crew members was always keeping watch while others were asleep, making sure that their Captain stayed in bed for his allotted time.

As expected he tried to wiggle out a few times, but they were always there, ready to stop him. Eventually, he gave up and settled in, though he still grumbled about it from time.

The crew came up with a good way to entertain him.

They told their Captain stories about the lives they had before joining the crew.

And in the end, those stories brought them even closer.

They were truly a family.


	4. New Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life with the Whitebeard Pirates has its ups and downs

The Whitebeards were fearless. It was a known fact. They were seasoned warriors who made every enemy they faced tremble in their pants.

Yet, even these seasoned warriors trembled when facing a calamity like no other.

"What have you been doing?!" Cornelia growled "I should slash all of your necks for what you did."

The Whitebeard pirates stared at angry nurse in abject horror, as they watched her attempt to calm a teen in her arms. Said teen inhaled and exhaled with shaky breath, in what seemed like short gasps. 

"We surrendered Captain to you because it seemed like you genuinely wanted him to be your brother, to be your family." Cornelia spoke icily "Yet you couldn't even be there for him when he needed you the most. If you can't even help him battle against his inner demons, then maybe we made a mistake in letting him join you."

She tore her gaze from them once the teen in her arms began shaking, and the Whitebeard pirates all breathed out collective sighs of relief

"It'll be okay." Cornelia murmured, running her fingers through her ex-Captain's hair "They can't get to you."

"They are there.....They keep telling me I don't deserve to live, that I should join my father in hell." Ace whispered with unseeing eyes "They keep telling me that I killed my mother. And they are right."

He laughed like he was crazy, until his laughter turned into painful coughs. Someone passed a glass of water to Cornelia, who pressed it against Ace's mouth, allowing him to drink greedily

Cornelia decided that she and her ex-Captain would be rooming for a week, all the while giving the Whitebeard Pirates the fiercest death glare imaginable.

-x-

The voices came back.

"You are a burden to them."

"That mother of yours was such a fool for wanting to throw her precious life away for someone like you."

"Won't it just be better if you were to end it all, to end your suffering? It'll be easier too. All you have to do is sneak into the kitchen, steal a knife and stab yourself in the heart."

"It will be the best outcome, not just for you, but for others as well. You'll be free from this misery and they won't have to put up with an abomination like yourself any longer."

Portgas D. Ace woke up with a start. It was the third night in a row. He thought he was stronger than this. He saw another person lying beside him, whom he recognized as Cornelia. He turned around and tried to get up, but a firm hand got ahold of his wrist, keeping him in place.

"You know that walling us out is not the answer." Cornelia smiled knowingly "So let us in. We're still in your division, you know."

She reached out and pulled out an old guitar.

"This would do nicely."

  
Your father came and went like the ocean’s tide  
And the day he left he never said goodbye  
Your mother started drinking like the whole world died  
You’ve been waiting for a miracle all your life  


Cornelia sung while continuing to strum the guitar, content with the fact that her Captain-turned-Commander was listening

  
'Cause if the fires don’t burn it down  
The rains will wash it away  
If you’re looking for solid ground  
A stone will never break  


She watched his tense form relax, and she gave him a small smile.

  
So give me all your pain  
And love will set you free  
Give me all your shame  
Put all your weight on me  
And I'll be the stone that you need me to be  


She ran a hand through his soft hair, noting that he had fallen asleep. She put away the guitar, before turning around and dozing off herself.

-x-

Ace and his division, which contained all of his former crewmates, were on a recon mission.

As they walked through the streets, there were hushed whispers and cat calls following them. The Spade Pirates observed the crowd, noticing that most of the people gathered were women.

"Ne, is Okashira still oblivious?" Aggy whispered 

"Yes." Deuce whispered back "We're giving him 'The Talk' after this mission is over."

Few of the bolder ones attempted to seduce Ace, but the Second Division members quickly put an end to that. There were those who wanted to take an advantage of their Commander in another way, and they promised to never let that happen. 

"You are too trusting for your own good, Commander." was the first thing Deuce said upon their return "Which is why you're coming with us for a little chat."

Before Ace could protest, his former first mate grabbed his wrist and dragged him into a small room where all of the former Spade Pirates and several others were waiting. Deuce shoved Ace onto the only empty chair in the room.

"Okay, the first lesson we will cover today is 'How to distinguish those that want to harm you from those who do not'." Deuce grinned "It is a very important lesson, so you should pay close attention. Mihar will make sure you do."

Mihar suddenly appeared behind Ace, brandishing a long wooden stick.

"Every time his attention span wanders, whack him onto the head with that." Deuce instructed

Mihar flashed an evil grin and Ace groaned

"Now that that's out of the way, let's begin!" Deuce smiled

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why do I like torturing my little bean so much?


	5. Dark one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the 'dark one' flaps his wings, death is sure to follow.

The former members of Spade Pirates were gathered in a spacious room, seated around the table. There was a tense silence in the room.

"Come on, say it." Cornelia broke the silence "Say what all of us are thinking right now."

"That little piece of shit." Mihar slammed his fist against the table "I wish he were still around here so I can wring his stupid fat neck."

All of the former Spade Pirates agreed, all of them sporting the identical expression of sadness. They had felt the agony of betrayal from the man they ate meals with, the man they drank together with, the man they partied together with.

"I guess that our stories were true." Deuce spoke up "When the 'dark one' flaps his wings, death is sure to follow."

The doors opened and their fellow Second Division members, including the Commander, came in. All of them were present and accounted for. 

All except one.

"How could he do this to us?" Ace clutched his own head, as if he were in pain "He was our brother...."

"This was bound to happen, Ace." Deuce said "He was the 'dark one' from our stories. Remember what happens when 'dark one' is around?"

"Betrayal." Ace answered, remembering the wild stories the Spade Pirates used to make up together

"That's right." Deuce nodded "This was bound to happen, so don't torture yourself anymore. Forget all about him."

"I can't." Ace straightened up "He committed the worst sin imaginable: killing a brother. I am gonna go after him and kill him. It's my responsibility as his Commander."

"Ex-Commander." Deuce pointed out "You stopped being his Commander the moment he did what he did."

"Besides, killing him is what the Second Division as a whole should do, not just you." Mihar added "At nightfall, we of Second Division will steal the boat and show him exactly why he shouldn't have crossed us."

The former Spade Pirates and the rest of Second Division members all let out a whoop of joy.

-x-

Deuce threw yet another knife at the wanted poster attached to the door. It struck the little slimeball in the eye. Deuce hummed in satisfaction. He wished he could do that to the original as well. Being blinded would be a proper punishment.

Stealing a ship had been easy, with most of Whitebeard pirates either drowning their sorrows in alcohol, or already asleep due to the aftereffects of it.

"Marshall D. Teach, 50 000 belli bounty." Deuce read from the poster on the door scornfully "Shouldn't be too hard to bring him down."

Mihar joined him in glaring at the wanted poster

"We're keeping the course steady. We'll be in Alabasta soon." Mihar informed 

"Good. Proceed with the preparations." Deuce grinned "And don't forget to coat our blades with it."

"It will be done." Mihar grinned back "Will it work as intended?"

"Once it enters his body, it will damage his optical nerves beyond repair, rendering him blind for the rest of his life." Deuce affirmed "Cornelia spent quite a while perfecting it. Don't doubt her knowledge."

"Then all we need to do is track him down and make sure that it does enter his body." Mihar nodded "He obtained a darkness Logia fruit, the Yami Yami no Mi, with his deceit, therefore, he should spend the rest of his life inside the element he coveted so much."

Deuce and Mihar gave each other thumbs-up, before they returned to their duties.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where it starts to differ from canon, because I don't like what happened in canon *me cri*


	6. The predators and the prey

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You owe us quite a bit, and we're here to collect."

The four people chosen to do the deed, Ace, Deuce, Mihar and Cornelia, stood perched on the roof, watching as Teach and his four crewmen walked casually by, as if they owned the place. The rest of their party were in hiding.

"Not yet." Cornelia whispered "Soon...."

Ace was skittish and restless, wanting to act, but Cornelia's soothing hand resting on his shoulder prevented him from doing so. Deuce and Mihar climbed down from the roof and strolled casually in the opposite direction from the one Teach was heading towards. They soon disappeared in the maze of the buildings.

"All right, now!" Cornelia released Ace

Upon realizing the plan, Ace leapt off the roof, grinning. He met Teach's gaze and held it there. In the distance, he saw his two companions approaching Teach from behind. He grinned once more. All he had to do was act as distraction for a while.

"All right, Teach." Ace cracked his knuckles "You know why I am here, so let's get this over with."

"Indeed, zehahaha." Teach laughed "But before that, I have just one question. Will you be my nakama?"

"Of course not!" Ace snapped "After what you did to the family, the very idea is ridiculous!"

"I see....." Teach frowned "What a shame.....we could have had it all...."

Ace unleashed a stream of fire at Teach, but Teach absorbed it all before thrusting his left hand forward. A strong force pulled Ace towards Teach.

"Let me show you the power of Yami Yami no Mi. Your body is fire, isn't that right, Ace?" Teach mused "Mine is darkness, the thing that annihilates everything else. You don't stand a chance against me."

By now, Mihar and Deuce were standing few feet behind Teach. Deuce thrust the tip of his blade into his former comrade's neck. He waited for the chemical covering the blade to enter the traitor's bloodstream, before pulling the blade out.

Teach turned his head to look at them.

"Who are you?" he demanded 

"I am Deuce."

"I am Mihar."

"The two of us are the former members of - now defunct - Spade Pirates." Deuce informed, grinning.

"That blade you were just stabbed with was coated in my poison." a woman informed casually 

She was standing behind Ace, with a dagger pressed against his neck.

"My name is Cornelia, a doctor." she introduced "And I am a member of Spade Pirates as well."

"We came here to capture Portgas D. Ace for his bounty." Deuce continued "Imagine what will happen if we deliver the son of the Pirate King to the Marines. We'll be filthy rich, and we'll be able to sail the seas as Spade Pirates again!"

"That's why we couldn't let you finish him off." Cornelia gave Deuce a warning gaze "So stay here like a good little boy while we deliver him, and then we'll be back for you. We'll decide what to do with you."

Deuce slapped seastone cuffs onto Teach's wrists, while Mihar and Cornelia did the same with Ace.

"Now, let's be on our way, pirate." Cornelia spoke in a biting tone

Deuce and Mihar grabbed Ace's wrists, dragging him away, while Cornelia followed. 

Once they were out of earshot, all four of them burst out laughing. Ace rested his hand on a pillar to keep himself from falling down.

"You three are pretty good actors." Ace managed to say in between bouts of laughter

"You weren't half bad yourself, Okashira." Mihar produced the keys out of nowhere and unlocked Ace's cuffs

"It wasn't all an act." Deuce spoke in melancholic tone "I really do hope that Spade Pirates get to sail the seas again, with our Okashira...."

"It will happen." Cornelia promised "Whitebeard has to die eventually, and when he does, we'll be Spade Pirates once more."

"I hope we'll all live to see that day come." Deuce gave Cornelia a small smile

"So what do we do now?" Ace changed the subject

The words his companions uttered made him feel guilty.

"The poison won't kick in for another four hours." Cornelia said "We'll be back before that time expires to 'collect' him. I want him to see what his fate will be after upsetting Okashira."

-x-

The self-proclaimed Spade Pirates returned just as his sight was beginning to dim, Teach saw. The bigger guy - Mihar - hoisted him onto his back and carried him off, while the other two followed

"Ace is in Marine custody." Cornelia informed casually "Finally our dream of reforming Spade Pirates is within reach. We'll buy them back from your former crew-stealing Captain, Whitebeard, and we'll give him an extra incentive by delivering you to him so that he can punish you as he sees fit. He'll be so happy he'll agree to our trade without a second thought."

"But first, we'll bring you to our Captain." Mihar added "See if he agrees."

"No need to." a voice responded "I am here."

Teach looked up to see a young man dressed in black coat, and wearing a top hat on his head, which obscured his features. He also wore the same type of eyeglasses that Deuce wore.

"Ah, Captain." Deuce and the mysterious man high-fived each other

The gesture was repeated with Mihar and Cornelia. Then the mystery man's gaze fell on Teach.

"Who is this?"

"He was one of Whitebeard's 'sons', before he betrayed his family." Deuce informed "Do you agree that we deliver him to Whitebeard for punishment in exchange of letting the rest of Spade Pirates go, Captain?"

"I sure do!" the mystery man exclaimed "Do you even need to ask?"

"No, I suppose I don't." Deuce chuckled warmly

-x-

Soon, Teach felt a solid wood under his feet once more. His eyesight had gotten even more blurry. He could see a faint outline of Whitebeard's body towering above him. Faint whispers were heard in the background, but Teach couldn't discern what was being said. Finally, Whitebeard raised his hand and the chatter stopped.

"Okay, since you'll be blinded soon, I came up with the rest of your punishment. Namur will tie you down at the bottom of the ocean. That will set the example to others that the act of murdering your nakama is something I will not tolerate." Whitebeard announced in a booming voice "In exchange, Spade Pirates and their Captain are free to leave the crew anytime they wish to do so."

There were multiple cheers in response to this announcement. 

"Let's go, bud." Namur grabbed Teach by the waist and both of them took a dive into the ocean

As soon as they were gone, Ace removed his cloak, top-hat and goggles

"This outfit was really stuffy." Ace complained "I am never going through that again. Was what you said about us being free to leave anytime we wish true, Pops?"

"Yes." Whitebeard nodded "However, I hope you'll stay for some time. My health is getting worse every day. I would prefer to die while surrounded by all of my children."

"Of course, Pops." Ace smiled "We'll stay for a while longer."


End file.
